Pacquiao vs. Horn results: Jeff Horn pulls off shocker, defeats Manny Pacquiao in controversial decision

In a controversial decision, Jeff Horn became the new WBO welterweight champion by upsetting Manny Pacquiao in an entertaining fight.

In front of 55,000 fans at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Australia, little-known Jeff Horn did the unthinkable and defeated the legendary Manny Pacquiao to win Pacquiao’s WBO welterweight title. This was not a fight that was necessarily easy on the eyes in terms of pure technical skill, but it was nevertheless quite entertaining and now will be heavily talked about due to the nature of the decision.

Horn was the early aggressor in round 1, landing several good punches but Pacquiao shook his head, as if to say he wasn’t affected whatsoever. He had the crowd on its feet with a sharp uppercut against the ropes. The Aussie went to the head and body and Pacquiao was content to work on the counter, where he clipped Horn with a right on the way forward. Pacquiao finished the round strongly by landing the jab and the right hook from southpaw position. Horn was not as accurate in round 2, as Pacquiao ducked the power punches and stung Horn with his trademark left. They had a fun exchange at the end of the round, with both men landing lefts. Manny was able to get into more of a rhythm in round 3, even as Horn continued to go on the attack. His shots were more crisp and he was dodging the left hooks of Horn, who tried to use his physicality to make up for his technical disadvantage.

Pacquiao worked the body of Horn in round 4. Horn’s best shot was an uppercut that made Manny stop his movement just momentarily. Blood was trickling out of the right eye of Horn, stemming from a cut two rounds prior. Manny egged Horn on to come towards him as Horn got off to a good start to the 5th. Horn was going to the body frequently throughout the contest in bursts but not necessarily in single shots. Pacquiao continued to attack the body and sneak in shorter punches on the inside. Horn’s footwork was looking increasingly sloppier and he was cracked by two big lefts as round 5 ended. He sought to smother Pacquiao against the ropes and land punches there, if only for as long as he was able to muscle him. A clash of heads in round 6 led to bleeding along the hairline of Pacquiao, which is certainly a better place than near the eyes. Horn capped off the halfway mark of the entertaining contest with a solid straight right that may have had Pacquiao stunned. He was very much in this contest and fighting well despite the skill discrepancy.

There wasn’t a lot of action in round 7. Horn was countered by a right hook after he partially connected on a jab. Otherwise there was more clinching than in the previous rounds. Another head clash led to Pacquiao bleeding on the other side of his head. Horn made the fight ugly at times and it perhaps provided Pacquiao more discomfort than he let on. Pacquiao sniped Horn with a good left and then a jab from his southpaw stance early in round 8. Horn was pushed down after he was hit with a left, so there was no knockdown awarded. A powerful left appeared to stagger Horn late in the 8th, and it was one of his most impressive shots all fight.

Pacquiao poured on the pressure in round 9 as he searched for the knockout. Multiple head shots were absorbed by Horn. A right hook had the Australian hurt. It became an all-out slugfest as Horn did everything he could to fight back, but he was in major trouble. Horn’s punches were labored and Pacquiao was just teeing off with power blows. Horn staggered on a left and was wavering, but incredibly survived the onslaught. Horn was more or less in survival mode and Pacquiao didn’t keep his foot on the gas in round 10. The right side of Horn’s face was a bloody mess. He did throw back and showed some tremendous guts. Pacquiao snapped Horn’s head back with a left hand, just as Horn clipped him with a right. Horn was a little more active in the 11th and it was evident that Manny was slowing down. There were more ugly moments of clinching and head holding by Horn, as Pacquiao caught Horn with a flush jab. Neither man really hammered home clean punches in the penultimate frame.

Pacquiao and Horn closed the show with good flurries as Horn searched for the home run shot and rough Pacquiao up. Manny took advantage of Horn’s vulnerabilities as he opened up for big blows, tagging Horn with straight lefts and right hooks, but Horn was doggedly determine to pull off the upset. They swung for the fences in the final seconds as the crowd roared its approval of both men, particularly their countryman Jeff Horn. The roar grew louder when the scorecards were read.

Official result: Jeff Horn (17-0-1, 11 KOs) def. Manny Pacquiao (59-7-2, 38 KOs) by unanimous decision (117-111, 115-113, 115-113) to become new WBO welterweight champion

Scoring nine rounds for Jeff Horn is one of the most outrageous decisions you’ll see all year.